In a large prospective study of 22,623 participants, Tynkkynen and colleagues used Nightingale’s high-throughput NMR assay to measure 228 circulating metabolites in seven (out of eight) cohorts analysed.

Overall, lower blood concentrations of branched chain amino acids (isoleucine, leucine and valine) were associated with increased risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. These findings may possibly indicate that weight loss and dietary intake may play a role in dementia risk, pointing to branched chain amino acid levels as important early markers of mild cognitive impairment.